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What makes a Hall of Famer? What is that unique something that led to their historic success? Was it innate? Or did they need to cultivate a winning mindset? TennisWorthy, a podcast presented by the International Tennis Hall of Fame, seeks to answer these questions and uncover what it takes to become the greatest of champions. These wide-reaching conversations go beyond on-court results, and reveal the mindset of the sport’s legends. Hear from greats like Lleyton Hewitt, Tracy Austin, Ivan L ...
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Gabriela Sabatini: Reflecting on Positives and Passions
45:02
45:02
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Argentina's Gabriela Sabatini was a rising star as a junior, and she lived up to her early expectations. After becoming the youngest player to ever win the Orange Bowl (at age 13), she reached the semifinals of the French Open and the top 10 of the WTA rankings two years later. It wasn't all smooth sailing, though - her well-documented struggles wi…
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Conchita Martinez: For the Love of the Game
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Many tennis players start by hitting a ball against a wall - but Conchita Martinez took that early pastime to a new level. Watching her brothers and father play on the courts outside of her apartment as a child gave her spark to try, and she "loved it from the very beginning". Her imaginary matches against her heroes caught the eye of local coaches…
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Over the course of a year during 1990-91, Michael Stich went from being the 400th ranked player in the world to sitting inside the top 10, and winning Wimbledon. It was a steep and relatively quick ascent for a player who called himself a "terrible" juniors player. But for Stich, he credits his immense love for the sport as the reason he chose to c…
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Margaret Court: Developing Talent through Persistence
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Margaret Court captured an all-time record of 64 major titles during her esteemed tennis career, including 24 in singles, 19 in doubles and 21 in mixed doubles. As one of the greatest players of her era, there were several aspects of her life and training that she credits to pushing her game to the next level, which she details with Chris Bowers. C…
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Cliff Drysdale: Making an Impression in All Efforts
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41:34
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Cliff Drysdale is a preeminent voice in tennis broadcasting, but his commentary skill on television is just the latest chapter in a career that touches all aspects of the sport. Starting at a very young age in South Africa, Drysdale was a self-taught competitor who played alongside and claimed victories against some of the best in tennis history. I…
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Rosie Casals, Judy Tegart Dalton & Ann Jones: Pioneering Women's Professional Tennis
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51:30
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In 2021, the International Tennis Hall of Fame inducted its first group of contributors simultaneously: the Original 9. Together in 1970, these nine women broke from the established tennis landscape to sign $1 contracts with promoter Gladys Heldman, creating the first women's tennis tour. The early years of professional women's tennis were challeng…
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Tommy Haas: Competition Mindset and the "Inner Dog"
38:49
38:49
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Tommy Haas reached the world No. 2 ranking in singles in 2002, and then endured a series of injuries that delivered setbacks. Despite the obstacles, he persisted in his career, remaining at the top of the game for another decade-plus and winning two ATP Comeback Player of the Year awards. With Chris Bowers, Tommy discusses his journey from winning …
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Kim Clijsters: Finding Balance and Cherishing Connections
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28:59
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Kim Clijsters mastered the art of the comeback during her tennis career. After first retiring at age 23 to become a mother, she returned to the sport two years later and captured three of her four singles Grand Slam titles in her second act. Through it all, she was able to find the balance needed to be both a mother, daughter, friend and elite athl…
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Esther Vergeer: Forging a Path in Disability Sports
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37:42
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Esther Vergeer's career accomplishments and statistics are mind-boggling: 42 Grand Slam titles, 407-match win streak in singles until her retirement, 668 weeks at world No. 1. Her story of illness as a child, to discovering tennis and shattering records, stands unique amongst the sport's legends. With Blair Henley, Esther details how she became an …
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Pat Rafter: Doing the Right Work, and the Hard Work
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As the last true serve-and-volleyer to capture a singles Grand Slam, Aussie Pat Rafter brought uniqueness to the sport of tennis beyond just his playing style. In this episode, he and host Brett Haber leave few stones unturned, beginning with how he developed his playing style and modeling after legends Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker. Pat speaks th…
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Ken Rosewall: Sustaining Longevity Through Change
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Few tennis legends sustained longevity in their careers like Australia's Ken Rosewall. During his 30-plus year career on the courts, he captured an astounding 147 singles titles, spanning some of the most turbulent times in the sport. In the TennisWorthy Podcast, Ken discusses his elite tactics, including his legendary backhand, with host Chris Bow…
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The TennisWorthy Podcast is back for Season 2! The International Tennis Hall of Fame and host Chris Bowers bring a new set of enlightening interviews with legends and Hall of Famers for the new year. The podcast dives deep into the mindset of champions and uncovering the unique, special characteristics that define excellence on and off the court. F…
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It was Andre Agassi who in the early days of his relationship with Steffi Graf said, "You can always learn from a champion," but what can you learn? We've tended to end our podcast interviews with a question about what advice the legend would give both to tennis playing youngsters and to tennis parents. And there were a few themes that ran through …
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The TennisWorthy Podcast revisits Season 1 ahead of Season 2's debut in January 2024, with 5 themed episodes featuring legends and Hall of Famers. One of the great things about tennis is that you can lose yourself in it, but for that very reason, all involved have to remember that tennis doesn't exist in a vacuum. It can be a force for good, but on…
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The TennisWorthy Podcast revisits Season 1 ahead of Season 2's debut in January 2024, with 5 themed episodes featuring legends and Hall of Famers. Today's theme is the importance of family and the role parents play in the development of young, promising tennis talents. Such as the competitive nature of tennis and the need to start relatively early,…
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The TennisWorthy Podcast revisits Season 1 ahead of Season 2's debut in January 2024, with 5 themed episodes featuring legends and Hall of Famers. Today's theme is learning, improving and psychology, and among the players, explaining how they learned, how they worked on ironing out their weaknesses without undermining their strengths and how to dea…
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The TennisWorthy Podcast revisits Season 1 ahead of Season 2's debut in January 2024, with 5 themed episodes featuring legends and Hall of Famers. Today's theme is motivation and determination, and among the players, explaining what motivated them to dig deep and find something in their determination that made the difference between winning and los…
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John Newcombe: Prioritizing Mental Fortitude, and Relationships
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With an illustrious career marked by 26 Grand Slam titles, there is no question John Newcombe is a tennis legend. But what doesn’t appear on the stat sheet is what separates the Hall of Famer in a league of his own in his native Australia – and the sport of tennis as a whole. In the season finale, John emphasizes the importance of prioritizing sel…
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Mats Wilander: Breaking Through and Staying at the Top
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In 1982, Mats Wilander took the tennis world by storm when he won Roland-Garros at age 17. At the time, he was the youngest male player to ever win a major title in singles. He went on to capture 8 Grand Slam titles during his Hall of Fame career. In this episode, Mats recalls that memorable run in Paris, his mental toughness, and his incredible di…
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David Hall: Desire, Determination, and Pursuing Dreams
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49:54
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At age 16, David Hall was in accident that caused him to lose his legs. After picking himself back up, both physically and mentally, he went on to become a hugely successful wheelchair tennis player, capturing over 80 titles, six Paralympic medals, and the ultimate honor in tennis - induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. In this epis…
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Mark Woodforde: From Singles Success to Doubles Dominance
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Mark Woodforde is one of the most dominant doubles players of all time, capturing 17 Grand Slam titles, including 12 on the doubles side and 5 in mixed doubles. In a career full of knowledge and growth, he credits John McEnroe for showing him what it took to become an elite doubles partner. In this candid conversation with host Chris Bowers, Mark r…
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Vijay Amritraj: Using Sport as a Force for Good
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Vijay Amritraj is one of India's most successful tennis players. He's also the only person in history to play a match at Wimbledon in the morning, and end up in James Bond movie in the afternoon. In this episode, Vijay and Chris discuss how he overcame significant health issues to become a professional player, his experiences as a representative of…
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Stan Smith: The Power of Belief and Setting Goals
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44:21
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Stan Smith is much more than just the man behind the legendary Adidas sneaker. Learn his backstory, from how he became a star tennis player despite it not being his first focus, to pulling double duty with military service during his career, and much more. A seven-time major champion, Stan Smith is a former world No. 1 player and standout on the Da…
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Pam Shriver: Capitalizing on Strengths in a Power Pairing
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56:15
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Pam Shriver was half of an unstoppable team alongside Martina Navratilova during her playing career. In today's episode of the TennisWorthy podcast, Pam talks about that partnership, and how she was uniquely positioned from a young age to capitalize on her natural gifts. Pam lifts the curtain on what made her teamwork with Martina so unique, and ca…
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Gigi Fernandez: Determination and the Importance of Mindset
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Gigi Fernandez is one of the most successful doubles players in the history of the WTA Tour, but before she became known for her doubles mastery, she was joining her family on court growing up in Puerto Rico. On the island, she carved a path to play through determination, eventually becoming a collegiate champion and turned professional. Following …
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As the youngest American to ever turn pro at the time, Mary Pierce’s entrée into tennis is the stuff of a Hollywood film. But it was her perseverance and belief that generated sustained results over the course of a Hall of Fame career.In a wide-ranging and revealing conversation, Mary tells her story from how fate led her to pick up a racquet at ag…
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What drove one of the most consistent careers in tennis history? Hall of Famer Ivan Lendl credits his success to consistently showing up, believing in himself and putting in the work.In Episode 3’s conversation with Chris Bowers, Ivan opens up about how absorbing experiences on court – such as being a ball kid for his Czechoslovakian countryman Jan…
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Tracy Austin remains the youngest US Open champion in tournament history at just 16 years old, but her story actually begins much earlier, with a young girl dreaming to reach the sport’s highest heights.In Episode 2 of TennisWorthy, Tracy details her immersion in the sport from her earliest days, her innate ability to push herself, and the importan…
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Welcome to the TennisWorthy podcast presented by the International Tennis Hall of Fame, diving deep into the mindset of champions and uncovering the unique, special characteristics that define tennis legends and Hall of Famers on and off the court.The inaugural episode features Class of 2021 inductee and Australian great Lleyton Hewitt. Esteemed te…
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What makes a Hall of Famer? What unique quality led to their historic success? TennisWorthy, a podcast presented by the International Tennis Hall of Fame, seeks to answer these questions and uncover what it takes to become the greatest of champions.
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